Murray & Murray v. Raissi Real Estate Dev,, LLC

The law firm represented Raissi in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy case for a year, generating fees and expenses of $329,705.12. The bankruptcy case closed. Raissi failed to pay. The firm sued for breach of contract, account stated, open book account and failure to pay for goods and services rendered.It obtained an order extending the deadline for service and allowing it to serve Raissi via publication. Publication in the San Jose PostRecord generated no response. The firm obtained a default judgment. Its “Declaration of mailing (Code Civ. Proc., 587),” stated that Raissi’s address was “unknown.” Raissi moved to set aside the default, alleging that its counsel made a mistake in changing the address for its registered agent; that the bankruptcy court retained exclusive jurisdiction; and that the request for default was defective because it was not mailed to Raissi’s “last known address.” The firm stated that it had made eight separate attempts to personally serve Raissi at the property, which appeared vacant and had a sign indicating it was available to lease. The court of appeal reversed the ruling in favor of the firm. A mailing address is not “unknown” merely because personal service could not be effected at that address. View "Murray & Murray v. Raissi Real Estate Dev,, LLC" on Justia Law